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JACKSON BANQUET AT WASHINGTON CITY, 

JANUARY 8, 1854. 



Resolutions-Kegular and Volunteer Toasts-Speeches 
of Mr. Latham, Col. J. L. Orr, Mr. Breckenridge, 
Mr. Sidney Webster, Col. Forney, and Mr. Mc- 
Nerhany. 




Agreeably to previous announcement, the Democracy of the District of 
Columbia assembled in great numbers at Fuller's Saloon, to commemorate 
the Anniversary of the Battle of New Orleans, and to do honor to the 
immortal Hero of that glorious day. 

Col. William Selden, the President, upon taking the chair, returned 
thanks for the honor conferred in appropriate terms, and then read the fol- 
lowing resolutions , which were unanimously and enthusiastically adopted : 

RESOLUTIONS. 

Resolved, That upon this anniversary, consecrated to the glonrious memory of that 
great deed of arms at New Orleans, on the 8th of January, 1815, which still stands 
unsurpassed in the whole proud record of American valor, we hail with renewed 
enthusiasm and veneration the immortal name of Andrew Jackson — the hero whose 
sword was the talisman of victory— the statesman whose career is Jie g^ory of 
democracy — the patriot whose life was devotion to his country, and whose example 
is an inspiration to the cause of free government throughout the world. 

Resolved, That, as Democrats, holding the great principles so signally illustrated 
in the administration of Jackson to be inseparably identified with the highest inter- 
eats of our country, we recognise with pride and pleasure the restoration and renewed 
triumph of those principles in the administration of Franklin Pierce. In his charac- 
ter and policy, in the noble ami fearless language of h'is inaugural address, in the 
wise statesmanship and sound democratic doctrine of his first annual message, and 
in the approving voice of the democracy which cheers him onward in his patriotic 
career, we find full assurance that the principles and spirit of Jefferson and Jackson, 
still ruling in the presidential chair, and still living in the hearts of the people, are 
destined to illumine and protect the future advancement of our country, even as in 
past time they have guided its march to prosperity and renown. 

Resolved, That in the well-tried and eminent statesmen to whom the several depart- 
ments of the executive government have been confided, we find without exception 
men whose selection for their high positions is alike creditable to the discrimination of 
the President, and fortunate for the great party which in its convention foreshad- 
owed the. just and comprehensive policy in which they have been chosen; that in 
each of these departments the public service has been conducted under the direction 



£43> 



1 



of the President with admirable ability and success, and that in the manifestations 
of harmony and mutual confidence which have characterized the counsels of the 
President and his confidential advisers, we behold an auspicious presage of the con- 
tinued union and ascendency of the democratic party. 

Resolved, That the repression of sectional agitation, and the maintenance of domes- 
tic tranquillity, upon the basis of the compromise measures as a final adjustment of 
the controversy in relation to slavery, is a cardinal point in the policy of the demo- 
cratic party; and that this can only be accomplished by the cordial consent and 
united action of all Democrats to sustain the administration in its scrupulous obser- 
vance of the rights of the States as essential to the prosperity, perpetuity, and peace 
of our Federal Union. 

Resolved, That in its conduct of the foreign relations of the country, and in the 
energy which it is infusing into the two great arms of our national power, the pres- 
ent administration has conferred new elevation and dignity upon American citizen- 
ship, and, by its masterly and just vindication of the privileges of American nation- 
ality in the old Jacksonian spirit, has given new hope to the cause of free institu- 
tions, and challenged for our republic the admiration and respect of the world. 

Resolved, That the important reforms achieved since the 4th of March last, and 
still in progress, in the various departments of the Government, and especially in its 
fiscal administration, attest the fidelity and firmness with which the laws are ob- 
served and executed, bring back a vivid remembrance of the Jacksonian era, and 
commend anew the principles and policy of the democratic party to the confidence 
and support of the people. 

The company having partaken of the elegant and sumptuous banquet, 
the following regular toasts were read by the President. That to the Pre- 
sident of the United States was received with three times three cheers, the 
entire audience rising. That to the " Union of the States," and that to 
Andrew Jackson, were likewise received in a very marked/ manner, and 
with similar extraordinary honor: 

KEGULAR TOASTS. 

1. The day we celebrate: Its annual return brings joy to every Democratic heart, 
associated as it is with the honor and glory of our common "country. — [Yankee 
Doodle.] 

2. The Constitution of the United States: Magnificent in its conception — glorious 
in its results. — [Hail Columbia.] 

3. The President of the United States. — [President's March.] 

4. George Washington: First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his 
countrymen. — [Dirge.] 

5. Thomas Jefferson : The father of the Democratic Party — may his political pre- 
cepts ever be our guide in the fulfillment of our national destiny. — [Auld Lang Syne.] 

6. The Democratic Party : That party which lias preserved the Constitution in its 
purity, added "new beauty and vigor to our political system," and pressed onward 
the nation in its career of prosperity and greatness. — [The Star-Spangled Banner.] 

1. Andrew Jackson: The man who checked the progress of corruption, and 
brought back the Government in its republican simplicity, in accordance with the 
Democratic sentiment of the nation. — [Hail to the Chief.] 

8. The Union of the States : Bound together in one common brotherhood, we re- 
cognise "no North, no South, no East, no West." — [Washington's March.] 

9. The Army and Navy of the United States : On the land and on the sea they 
have vindicated American rights and honor, and crowned their deeds with imperish- 
able glory. Let them be increased and strengthened to meet the demands of our 
growing national interests. — [Columbia the Gem of the Ocean.] 

10. Our Foreign Policy: Under the new era which has dawned upon us, the 
American name and character have been, and will be, triumphantly vindicated 
abroad. — [Liberty Tree.] 

11. Commander Ingraham: His heroic conduct lias made illustrious hia name, and 
endeared it to every republican heart throughout the world. — [Guerriere Frigate 
Bold.] 



12. The Democratic Press: Difference of opinion upon minor details may well be 
tolerated when great cardinal principles are not sacrificed. — [The American Star.] 

13. Woman: Let her ever revere the name and cherish the memory of the im- 
mortal hero who silenced With the cannon's thunder the ruffian cry of "Beauty and 
Booty." — [Let the Toast be dear Woman.] 

VOLUNTEER TOASTS. 

The regular toasts having been drunk, volunteer toasts were received* 
By the Committee: 
The Gallant State of South Carolina. 

Mr. Orr responded as follows : 

I thank you, Mr. President and gentlemen, for the very cordial reception 
which the sentiment just offered received at your hands. The evening and 
the .occasion, and the regular sentiments which have been read, induce me 
to respond with peculiar pleasure to that sentiment in behalf of the State 
which I have the honor in part to represent. On the reading of the regu- 
lar toasts just concluded, I have perceived that two of the illustrious and 
gallant names which you have seen fit to remember and honor upon this 
occasion, were natives of the State which gave me birth, and are my coun- 
trymen. I allude, of course, to the world-renowned hero of New Orleans, 
and Captain Ingraham. [Great applause.] The one has passed from the 
scenes of earth to his final account; but no man has gone before him who 
has left his mark more deeply impressed on the policy of this Government, 
and no man will ever go after him who will impress his individuality so 
distinctly upon the history of this country as Andrew Jackson. [Applause 
and cries of no ! no !] The other, Captain Ingraham, is to you, as well as 
myself, personally a stranger ; but his gallant and bold-hearted act of daring 
and humanity in the bay of Smyrna, has shed a halo of glory around his 
name, and conferred imperishable renown upon the American flag and navy. 
I trust that the American people are still to know much more of him. 
They will ever find his gallantry and courage equal to any emergency, 
whether on the bosom of the deep blue sea, in the face of an enemy's bat- 
tery, or in neutral territory where American rights are invaded. [Ap- 
plause.] He is descended from the purest revolutionary stock — a family 
which served the country during "the time that tried men's souls." His 
manliness is only equalled by his modesty, and his merit alone surpasses 
both. He has proven himself worthy the name he bears, and all who may 
come to know Duncan Ingraham, will feel that his name and fame will 
never be by him dishonored. 

There is one incident which has come to my knowledge since the occur- 
rence in the bay of Smyrna, which shows still higher the refined delicacy 
of Captain Ingraham. He has been repining upon a sick bed since that 
occurrence, with health broken and constitution shattered, but there was 
too much of proud chivalry in his heart or him, to apply to the Secretary 
of the Navy to be relieved from his position and command in the Mediter- 
ranean — though disease was wasting him and the climate paralyzing his 
physical energies. He was nearly driven to the necessity of resigning his 
place, for, in consequence of feeling that he would be suspected of seeking 
his recall to enjoy the honors and cordial greetings which his countrymen 
have in store for him, he declined to make the request. Within the last 
two or three weeks my friend, the Hon. Caleb Lyon, of New York, and 
myself — and the kind interposition of Mr. Lyon is worthy of the highest 
commendation — called upon the Secretary of the Navy. He stated the 



4 

condition of Captain Ingraham's health, and the necessity and duty on the 
oart of the Government, in our judgment, to relieve him from his position. 
The Secretary replied, that if the Department had had any intimation what- 
ever that it was agreeable to Captain Ingraham to he relieved of his com- 
mand in the Mediterranean, an order would have been issued to that effect. 
lie said that it was unusual to relieve an officer unless on his own request; 
but inasmuch as the request proceeded from friends in this instance, he 
would send out orders, leaving it discretionary with Captain Ingraham to 
return or not. The Secretary met our request cheerfully, gallantly, and 
promptly. [Applause.] He appreciated, as did the Secretary of State, as 
well as the President himself, the high character and chivalry of Captain 
Ino-raham. He was glad of the opportunity to serve him; and I have the 
Treasure of saying to you now that an officer left this morning for New 
York to sail in the next Collins steamer, for the purpose of relieving him of 
the command of the St. Louis. In a few weeks, then, we may have the 
pleasure of greeting him as his noble acts so richly deserves — of attesting 
the high appreciation that his daring and gallantry have impressed on his 
countrymen. [Applause.] 

The State which I have the honor in part to represent, has been peculiar, 
as you are all well aware, in many of the political opinions that its people 
entertained. It has .refused to participate in the organization of the Demo- 
cratic party as a general rule ; but no State has adhered with more fidelity 
to the principles and even the nominations of that party than it has. [Ap- 
plause.] South Carolina is still devoted to those same Democratic princi- 
ples • and I tell you, that so long as the present Administration is governed 
and directed by those great principles Avhich governed and directed all the 
republican Presidents heretofore, it will have her cordial, and warm, and 
zealous support. [Applause.] I know that there are some differences of 
Opinion among Democrats as to the course which the Administration has 
pursued, and particularly in reference to certain appointments. Now, I am 
one of those who believe that the principle upon which the President has acted 
in m akin a* his appointments is the correct one. [Applause.] He may have 
erred in carrying out its details. I know that I have been imposed upon 
myself in nominating persons to office, and if one as humble as I am should 
have committed mistakes in recommendations, is it surprising that one who 
has to overlook thirty-one States, should also have committed mistakes in 
appointments ? [Applause.] It would have been dishonorable in the 
President if he received without notice or objection the votes of all who 
chose to come forward and stand on the Baltimore Platform, and all who 
went through the canvass, advocated and secured his election, and, after 
beinf installed, to have proscribed them, if he believed that there were 
honesty and fidelity in their declarations that they belonged to the true de- 
mocracy and intended to maintain its tenets. [Applause.] I do not 
think o-entlemen, however, that there has been any good cause for a schism 
in the Democratic ranks. I do not believe that any one of us has had all 
he expected. I made recommendations which I had near my heart; but, 
though unsuccessful in securing somo appointments, I knew that the Presi- 
dent lcid to overlook the whole country. He had other interests to con- 
sult* anil if it Avere not compatible with his opinions of public duty to mako 
the appointments tliat 1 have reeoinnieinled, I have not felt that I was au- 
thorized to make war upon his administration, or attempt to embarrass him 
in his policy; and I trust such will be the feeling of the party. Wo cannot 
expect to hav every thing our own way. and we must mako reasonable al- 



lowance for the President, who is charged with the carrying out of great 
principles. It is a matter of great importance for the preservation and 
perpetuation of democracy, that the President should he correct in his 
principles, than that he should he correct in his appointments. If he will 
carry out Democratic principles as Jefferson and Jackson did, he will he ahle 
at the expiration of his four years to turn the Government over into the 
hands of a Democratic successor; and the principles which we have been 
fighting and struggling for will be perpetuated and preserved. I trust, 
therefore, that the President will he sustained by all good Democrats. [Ap- 
plause.] I hope that if we are not satisfied with all that has been done, a 
little will be conceded for the sake of harmony — that we will exercise the 
charity and forberance which all of us would so much need if we occupied 
his place. [Applause.] I heartily thank you, Mr. President and gentle- 
men, for the kind reception which you have given the sentiment and the 
desultory remarks I have made. '[Applause.] 

Three cheers were proposed for the gallant State of South Carolina, and 
they were given with great enthusiasm from one end of the hall to the 
other. 

Mr. D. Ratclife submitted the following toast which was warmly ap- 
plauded, viz : 

California: Her abundant gold is not the finest specimen of her prolific soil — 
her Democratic statesmen are the noblest jewels that she has produced. 

Mr. Latham. Mr. President and gentlemen : It has been said by a cele- 
brated philosophical historian, that the history of some men is the history 
of their times. To no man, probably, could this remark be applied with 
more justness than to the celebrated hero whose victory we this night com- 
memorate. Andrew Jackson was the exponent of two great ideas in the 
American Government — one of a military and the other of a civil charac- 
ter. And in response to the toast which has just been proposed, I desire 
to show the connexion this old hero had with the development of those 
principles of the democratic party which have added the State which I 
have the honor in part to represent to the constellation of the American 
confederacy. [Cheers.] I have said that he established and impressed 
upon the American Government two great ideas — the one military and the 
Other civil. You all recollect that previous to the war of 1812, it was a very- 
grave question among the statesmen of our country whether or not this 
Government could be administered upon purely civil principles ; whether 
the great experiment of self-government upon which we had essayed could 
be carried out without an army sufficient to support it. You know full 
well that the belief had become a part of the political creed of all nations, 
that it was essential for the preservation of any Government that there 
should be established a well-organized and regular army to carry out and 
fulfil its decrees. Gen. Jackson dissipated that idea in the war of 1812. 
and particularly by the event which this night we commemorate. He then 
fully established the fact that the citizen soldiery of our country, who had 
the interests of their Government at heart, could wield its destinies and 
could direct its arms, and lead us on to victory. [Cheers] This then was 
the great military priuciple that he established, that it was not necessary 
that we should have a standing army or a large military force to uphold our 
institutions. The old hero knew then, as you now know, that our Gov- 



ernment is upheld by the love and affection of the people, and if the bark 
sinks, one plunge, and we all go with it. [Cheers.] 

But he also established a great feature in our Government of civil char- 
acter. I refer, gentlemen, to the time when he was called to preside over 
the destinies of our nation as President of the United States — an office 
which devolved upon him a greater degree of responsibility than ever 
rested on any man. Gentlemen, he then clearly and determinedly distin- 
guished between the powers which legitimately belong to the Federal Gov- 
ernment and those which belong to the States. He issued his fiat that the 
State governments had certain rights, and that the individuals of the States 
had certain rights, and that, so far as the States had not delegated their rights 
to the Federal Government, they were reserved to the States themselves ; 
that the Federal Government was created for special purposes — to extend 
the regis of its protection over their union — and that it had no power ex- 
cept what was expressly delegated in the 'Constitution of the United States, 
[Cheers.] I need not tell you that in all the conflicts which characterized 
his administration — the most memorable that have characterized the history 
of any administration from that of Washington down to the present time — 
he ever preserved the individuality of character which has stamped its im- 
press on the American people. [Cheers.] It was those pinciples which 
he engrafted upon the policy of the American Government that led to the 
series of events which I do not choose upon this occasion to follow — re- 
sulting in the addition to the Union of the States, which is now one of the 
brightest stars of this confederacy. [Loud cheers.] There is probably not 
one Avithin the sound of my voice who has not some friend or relative in 
the State which has just been toasted. And long before the American 
Government saw fit to extend its protecting shield over the State of Cali- 
fornia — long before the 9th of September, 1850, when that State was ad- 
mitted into the Union — they had there all the machinery of government, 
from municipal regulations up to the full organization of a large and com- 
prehensive State — a State three and a half times as large as the State of 
New York. [Cheers.] Gentlemen, I am here to night as a representative 
of progress, because my State itself has been the result of progress, and 
therefore I will give you, in conclusion, as a toast, our next-door neighbor : 

The Sandwich Islands : Pearls of great beauty set in a sea of blue enamel ; a 
a jewel which will yet adorn the forefinger of Freedom, that points westward. 

The following sentiment was then offered : 

Kentucky: The pioneer Commonwealth of the great "West; her Democratic sons 
have struggled for victory with an honesty and consistency which cannot fail to 
revolutionize the politics of that people. 

Mr. Breckenridge, who, on rising, was received with deafening cheers, 

spoke as follows : 

Mr. President and gentlemen : I am not in the habit of apologizing for 
being unprepared to respond to sentiments offered on occasions like this, 
because whenever I come to a public meeting I hold myself bound to take 
my proper share of the proceedings. I desire, however, to say to you, that 
after what has been heard to-night, and in view of what you may expect to 
hear, I shall detain you a very short time. 

. In response to the sentiment just proposed, I am sorry that it is not in 
my power to say that Kentucky may be welcomed to-day into the family 
of d'-mocratic States. I hope, however, that the time is not distant when I 
can say so. When we think of lwr origin — when we remember that she 



was born in the democratic fold — that her infancy was rocked in the demo- 
cratic cradle — it increases our regret that in after-life she was led off by that 
great man, whose genius was so brilliant that it seemed the true fire from 
Heaven. [Loud cheering.] She followed his principles and his person ; 
she adhered to him with constant fidelity ; and in all the elements of cour- 
age, honor, and greatness he was worthy of her love. He is gone ; and 
now an opportunity is afforded her to remember the principles which ushered 
her into political being. [Cheers.] And allow me to say to you, gentle- 
men, that she has as gallant a body of democrats as ever struggled in a 
minority ; and they hope the day is not far distant when she will take her 
original and appropriate place in the republican column, and when she will 
embrace once more — never again to abandon — the principles that marked 
the epoch of her origin. [Tremendous cheering.] 

Gentlemen, I have little to say in regard to the occasion which we have 
met to celebrate, and yet I must say a word or two that occurs to me. It 
was well said by the gentleman from California that General Jackson's his- 
tory may be viewed in a double aspect — military and civil. The achieve- 
ment which we have met to commemorate to-night was perhaps the most 
remarkable in the annals of our military history. It was there that we of 
the West — the people of the valley of the Mississippi — were taught to un- 
derstand that a man of genius could, out of raw materials and rude ele- 
ments, create, by his own genius and will, a power competent to repel the 
veterans of England. [Loud cheers.] And if, hereafter, it shall be their 
fortune to be engaged in any future contest, why, the blood of their ances- 
tors will quicken in the veins of their descendants, who will not bear the 
thought of falling short of the renown which was achieved upon the plains 
of New Orleans. [Cheers.] Therefore, that act of Jackson and his raw 
militia will, in any future war, be worth an army to the United States of 
America. [Renewed cheers'.] 

But, gentlemen, from the resolutions which were read to-night, and from 
the character of the speeches which have been made, I presume that this is 
a political meeting, too, and that it is not out of order to refer to the civil 
as well as to the military services of Andrew Jackson. Gentlemen, to my 
mind he was a greater hero in civil than in military life. [Loud cheering.] 
What is it to-night that makes you respond so enthusiastically to the men- 
tion of his namel What is it that springs up in the heart of every Amer- 
ican when the name of Jackson is mentioned ? Why, it is the fact that 
when he was in the presidential chair, and when monopolies and faction, 
and power and talent, combined to perpetuate the most gigantic abuses, 
and arrayed themselves against the liberties of his country, the Old Hero, 
almost alone, nobly defended the passes of the Constitution, until the people 
came to his rescue. [Great and prolonged cheering.] Gentlemen, I need 
not dwell upon it. I regard it as the most heroic act in civil or military 
life, ancient or modern. [Renewed and enthusiastic cheering.] 

Well, gentlemen, my friend from South Carolina (Mr. Orr) has referred 
to-night to the present condition of the democratic party. Before I say 
one word about the present, let me refer for one instant to the past. The 
maxims of Jefferson, and of Monroe, and of Jackson are ours — they are our 
watchwords. The policy of this party has brought us to our present amaz- 
ing height of national renown ; and in claiming this I mean nothing disre- 
spectful to any individual or party. Intending to say nothing offensive to 
any gentleman present of opposite opinions, I speak only of results as the 
proper consequence of democratic policy. [Cheers of " Good !" " Good 1"] 



s 

This policy has framed your laws, managed your affairs, controlled your 
government, and done all in such a way that prosperity and abundance 
have continued to smile upon the land, and we now present to the world 
the spectacle of a people unoppressed hy taxation, yet overburdened with 
revenue. Again, under its auspices, what vast domains have been added 
to the area of republican freedom. To it we are indebted for Louisiana, 
Texas, California, Oregon, Utah, and New Mexico. It has carried honora- 
bly the flag of the republic across the continent, and in the victorious tract 
of that flag have followed Christianity, civilization, and the arts of peace. 
[Prolonged" and enthusiastic applause.] From the frozen regions of the 
North to the edge of the tropics, from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean, it 
has planted the germ of a free and independent empire to which Rome, in 
the height of her glory, could qpt be compared. [Loud cheers.] Withal 
it has so stimulated enterprise, rewarded labor, and extended commerce, that 
we see American society in every department moving forward by quickstep 
march to the music of industry's hum. 

[A Voice. We are going to have Cuba one of these days. Applause. J 

To such a party we belong; and these are the monuments of its policy 
and its glory. What has been done, gentlemen, has been done in a manner 
not inconsistent with the Constitution of our country. New States and new 
Territories have been added. No State has been pressed so to the centre 
as to chafe her ; no State has been driven off so as to move eccentrically ; 
but each playing freely in its proper orbit, the whole system has moved on 
in beautiful harmony, without collision and without disorder. [Applause.] 

Gentlemen, under these circumstances, with such a party, with such an- 
tecedents, and with such prospects, I, as an humble member of the demo- 
cratic party, went to its convention at Baltimore in 1852 to nominate a 
candidate for the presidency. The party had been divided, broken by per- 
sonal collisions, personal aspirations, and personal antipathies, which had 
previously resulted in our defeat ;. and as I understood it, as the people un- 
derstood it, we met together to lay upon the altar of common principles 
and common country past differences and past antipathies. We did do it, 
and sealed the act by a bond, and that bond was a written declaration of 
political principles ; and upon that written declaration of political princi- 
ples we nominated a candidate for the presidency ; we nominated a gentle- 
man who had not been connected with the acerbities, the passions, and the 
collisions of the past, and yet a gentleman whose antecedents were such 
that he could become a pure and proper representative of these principles, 
[Applause.] He was elected triumphantly, and upon what? Upon the 
platform of political principles thus laid down. And by whom was he 
elected? By the whole democratic party thus united upon this platform. 
[Renewed applause.] Gentlemen, I advocated his election. I advocated 
it upon the principles of that platform. Since that time he has issued 
two addresses to his countrymen — one his inaugural, and the other his 
recent annual message to Congress. I have read them, and read them 
carefully. I do not see anything in either which does not respond 
to the letter and spirit of the great platform of principles to which I have 
referred. The Democrats of my State say so. [Applause.] Why, there- 
fore, should any Democrat look coldly upon or stand aloof from the pres- 
ent Executive of the United States and his official advisers ? lias he be- 
trayed any principle? Has lie been faithless to his great trust? No. 
il.-us be not, with a noble constancy, kept his eye constantly fixed upon 



9 

the programme laid down before he was drawn from Concord, and has he 
not honestly endeavored to carry it into effect ? [Applause.] In the mean 
time, have not the laws been faithfully executed, the government adminis- 
tered with purity, and all our iuterests, at home and abroad, managed with 
signal ability ? A great field opens here, but I have not now time to enter 
it. If I should put myself in opposition to the present Executive, wheu 1 
go home to render an account to my constituents, they would say, " You 
stumped the State a year ago in favor of the President on certain princi- 
ples ; has he adhered to them ? Yes. Has he maintained them honestly i 
Yes. Then, why do you oppose him ? I oppose him because he appointed 
A, B, and C to office in particular localities, when I thought he ought to 
have appointed D, E, and F." These things are transient; they are tem- 
porary, below the level of the times and the occasion. [Applause.] As 
my friend from South Carolina said, to say that the President of the United 
States has succeeded in appointing in every instance the proper man 15 
office, would be absurd. It would be gross sycophancy and flattery to say 
so ; and I presume no man would be readier than the President himself 
to say that errors have been committed. In the first place, the President 
cannot personallv know every human being in this confederacy of tweni y- 
five millions of people ; and, in the second place, if he knew every one, lie 
must become infallible before he ceases to be liable to err. And infallibility 
is not an attribute of any man. [Applause.] Gentlemen, we need have no 
fears of serious opposition to the present administration inside the demo- 
cratic party, because the basis of such opposition must be too narrow t< > 
form a party upon. [Prolonged applause.] I feel, gentlemen, that I am 
detaining you too long. 

[Cries of Go on ! Go on ! A Voice — Go on ! You are giving the pub- 
lic just what has been wanted. [Applause.] 

I have but one word to say in reference to the disappointed — but one 
word. I am in favor of the union of the democratic party. [Great cheer- 
ing.] I believe it can exist, and I believe that it ought to exist. I believe, 
too, that before this Congress closes its session, when those great questions 
come up upon which the party and the administration are to be tried, you 
will see the democratic party a unit. [Loud cheers.] Heavens ! Think 
of it! Think of this administration dragging its four years through upon 
a contemptible little issue of whether Tom, Dick, or Harry was or was not 
properly appointed in the State of Kentucky or elsewhere ! [Tremendous 
and prolonged cheering.] Think of it ! Is there nothing higher ? Is there 
nothing nobler ? Is there no principle to advocate ? Is there no measure 
to cany out ? There are principles and measures. They are laid down in 
the inaugural address of President Pierce and in his annual message. And, 
for one, I desire to put aside these contests as contemptible and trivial, to 
foster no intestine feuds; to proscribe none who are true to principle; to 
recognise the honesty and propriety of the general course of the adminis- 
tration; to call public attention to abuses rooted out and reforms achieved; 
and to grapple with those great questions which at last must decide our 
fate with the people and with posterity. [Great cheering.] 

Gentlemen, I feel that I am not in a condition to address you longer, and 
therefore, with sincere thanks for the cordiality and kindness with which 
you have received me, I beg to give place to some other gentleman. [Here 
the entire audience rose and gave three enthusiastic cheers.] 



10 

By the Committee : 

The Granite Hills of New Hampshire: Fertile in every good and great qualifica- 
tion for the Chief Magistracy of the American Confederacy. 

Mr. Sidney Webster, in response to this toast, spoke as follows: 
Although your call, Mr. Chairman, is unexpected and somewhat embar- 
rassing, I can but thank you for your kindness. My heart goes out, to the 
members of this Association, for the enthusiasm and good will, with which 
they responded to the sentiment you have just proposed. 

There has been so much said to-night, which has been well said — and 
said, too, with an eloquence which few can ever hope to equal — that on 
any other occasion little would remain. But on each returning anniversary 
of the 8th of January, the spell of a great name comes upon all hearts, com- 
pelling the free utterance of their thoughts and opinions, however common- 
place and trite. You cannot pronounce the name of Andrew Jackson but 
that a multitude of ideas, a myriad of emotions, start instantly into being, 
and silently gather around. [Cheers.] Our thoughts at once run bright- 
ening along the links in that chain of memory which binds the present to 
the past. We are insensibly carried back to a review of the career of that 
man who has given immortality to the day we celebrate. We dwell with 
increased profit, upon the early trials and sufferings, and the enlarged pa- 
triotism of him, who was dedicated to the service of his country, in boyhood, 
by the baptism of fire, and by the shedding of paternal and fraternal blood. 
[Cheers.] It is well to assemble, as we do to-night, to recount these ser- 
vices. It is fitting thus to rehearse the awful virtues of our patriotic fathers. 
Affection prompts it, duty demands it, common patriotism compels it. 
Next in thanksgiving to that good God, who is the author of all good, 
should be our affectionate reverence for those, who have been, and are, the 
instruments here in working out the blessings which have been, continually 
showered upon us a nation. 

In the long and crowded catalogue, which records the distinguished acts 
which mark the career of General Jackson, the achievments at New Orleans, 
which we are here to commemorate, and by which the superior numbers 
and veteran determination of a foreign foe were driven back from the spoil 
and dishonor of a rich and populous territory, and whereby the long wrongs 
of England for a quarter of a century were at last avenged, and our glorious 
flag again flung out, all unstained as on that day when freedom, 

"Tore the azure robe of night, 
And set the stars of glory there " — 

stand with unquestioned preeminence. But my friend from Kentucky, with 
an eloquence such as seldom falls from the lips of man, has reminded you 
that these achievements do not constitute Jackson's only claim to glory. 
With him " peace hath " indeed " her victories, no less renowned than war." 
The administration of the Federal Government by General Jackson, for- 
tunately for his country, fortunately for himself and for those who came 
after him, transpired in stirring and momentous times. The high purpose, 
the firm resolve, against which the waves of opposition only dashed to 
break themselves in scattered foam, were to be tested under new and un- 
tried circumstances. Most of the measures of the Administration which 
bears his name presented topics of grave and serious differences of 
opinion. You, sir, know full well how important were the issues in-, 
volved. The two great elements of a State, labor and wealth, had 
become strong enough to contend together, for the rights of the elder 



11 

born. The reserved rights of the States were endangered. The greatest 
minds in America engaged in the discussions. American eloquence then 
achieved triumphs in the Senate, second only to those of the revolutionary 
epoch. Jackson was victorious. His enemies were compelled to adopt 
what they had been pleased to call the chief of his heresies ; and to this day 
there has not arisen from among them one strong enough, or bold enough, 
to lay one stone upon another of that which he threw down into ruins. He 
was called upon to meet depreciating friends and open enemies. There 
were not wanting those who denounced his political integrity and assailed 
his private character. There were to be found those who continually and 
persistently look backward to criticise and condemn, but never forivard to 
lead in the responsibility of the inception of great movements. But Jackson 
had so long been accustomed to look to his own conscience, and to the in- 
telligence of the masses of his countrymen, for an approval of his acts, and 
to acknowledge no other authority upon earth, that in all his trials and 
perplexities no hoarse murmur of disapprobation could turn him from his 
great purpose — the permanent good of his country, and the perpetuity of 
the great organization which he believed, and we all believe, is at once the 
conservator of our liberties and the controlling element of our national 
growth. 

I am aware, Mr. Chairman, that I am detaining you much too long. 
[Cries of "No! Go on!"] But while I am upon my feet, the memory of 
another epoch in American history comes to my mind. An allusion to it 
may not be inopportune at this time, when the hosts of democracy through- 
out the republic are again re-assembling upon the high table land of the 
the Union, the constitution, and the reserved rights of the States — at this 
time, when the North gives up, and the South holds not back. I allude, of 
course, to that day — perhaps the darkest in our history — when discord 
shook with ominous meaning her gorgon locks. The sublimity with which, 
on that occasion, the President announced, and the steady determination 
with which he maintained, that doctrine, sacred as the name of Washing- 
ton — " The Union, it must be preserved " — will be held in grateful remem- 
brance till the last page of your country's history has been turned. Nor 
does it detract any from the glory of Jackson, that the democracy on that 
occasion awarded praise to another American statesman, who now sleeps by 
the side of the pilgrims — fit companions of the mighty sleeper — in the 
modest tomb in his own New England. 

Again, I thank you, Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, for the sentiment you 
have proposed to New Hampshire. She deserves it. ' She deserves all and 
more than you can say of her. Her intelligent citizens for nearly a quarter 
of a century, in every crisis of your party or your country, with but one 
brief exception, have v on each returning election day, brought and laid at 
your feet clear and overwhelming democratic majorities. Whenever your 
country has been in danger from a foreign foe, whenever you wanted men 
to fight your battles, whenever the cause of democracy, the rights of any 
of the States of the republic have been in peril, New Hampshire has been 
always found foremost upon the perilous ridges of battle. 

Mr. Webster closed, amid repeat cheers, and loud cries of " Go on," by 
proposing the following sentiment, which was received with great applause : 
"South Carolina: Rich in revolutionary merit ; rich in the nwnory of those who 
Jvungered and thirsted after constitutional liberty; rich in the literary and scientific 
accomplishments of her sons — but richer far in having been the birth-place of such a 
man as Jackson." 



12 

Despatch from Tammany. 

At this stage of the proceedings a telegraphic communication was re- 
ceived from the Tammany Society, celebrating the day at Tammany Hall, 
covering the following sentiment : 

"Gen. Robert Armstrong: The personal friend and pupil of the illustrious hwo 
whose gallant achievements we now celebrate." 

This was brought in by Mr. Key, the district attorney, who said that 
although sick, he conld not refrain from coming down with it. 

The Tammany toast was responded to by telegraph, as follows : 

Washington, Jan. 9, 1854. 

To the Tammany Society greeting: We received your sentiment with a national 
feeling, and respond as follows: 

Gen. Robert Armstrong : The man to whom General Jackson bequeathed his sword 
is so intimately connected with our national history, that if ever the occasion should 
require its services it will never be sheathed with dishonor. 

Mr. Pool rose at this stage of the procedings, and said that the Old 
Keystone, a State that gave Andrew Jackson fifty thousand majority, 
had not yet been heard from, and proposed a sentiment complimentary bo 
Col. Forney. 

Mr. Forney rose and said : 

Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, I am deeply indebted to you for the honor 
you have done me in connecting my name with that of my native State. 
Pennsylvania. We Pennsylvanians have a modest old Commonwealth, 
and we are proud of her. We are willing to wait till the tail end of the feast : 
but when the hour comes in which the Government is in peril, when the hour 
comes in which democratic principles are in danger, when the hour comes in 
which the country's flag is assailed, that glorious old State, with a modest 
promptitude that never has failed her, is always found quickly in the front rank. 
[Three rousing cheers were here given for the Keystone State.] Pennsyl- 
vania, of all the northern States — I say it with due deference even to New 
Hampshire, the native State of the President — Pennsylvania upon that 
great question, the importance of which to the lovers of this Republic can 
never abate and can never be undervalued — I mean the constitutional rights 
of the States — has ever been first and foremost ; and because she is right 
with regard to this question, she adheres to the standard of democracy, 
and all the more warmly when it is borne by such a chieftain as Franklin 
Pierce. [Enthusiastic applause.] 

Sir, I am one of those who are not here to approve universally of every 
appointment Avhich this Administration has made ; anil, indeed, what ] 'resi- 
dent or governor was ever known to be satisfied with all his own selections 
for office ? The President is neither ubiquitous nor infallible ; and the 
errors of patronage made by Jackson never dimmed the deathless glories 
of his civil and military eareer. [Loud cheers.] But I am proud to avow 
my sincere attachment to the Administration, and especially to its policy 1 . 
domestic and foreign, including its fearless devotion to that standard of 
economy in the expenditures of the Government, and those imperishable 
principles at the foundation of our free institutions, taught in the school of 
Jefferson and Jackson. [Cheers] Sir, the oo,,d old State of which I am 
a most humble citizen has no griefs to revenge; she has no resentments U> 
gratify. [Cheers. | The attempt to engraft upon her the quarrel ©f another 
State has signally failed. [Loud cheers.] No matter what the distinguished 



* 13 

auspices under which the attempt was made, no matter what the means 
that were resorted to, when the attempt was made, she remembered that 
in times past there had been another effort to seduce her from her allegiance 
to the Democatic party upon another question ; she remembered that this 
man whom she was now called upon to assail— I allude to President Pierce — 
during a long life and during an honorable service in yonder Capitol, had 
never given a vote against Democratic principles — -had never given a vote 
against State-rights ; and that, although representing one of the extremest 
northern States, he had never given a vote against the South. [Cheers.] 
Though assailed, and though attempts were made to intimidate him, he 
was always found true and '' steadfast. [Loud cheers.] I thank you, gen- 
tlemen, for the honor you have paid to the State of Pennsylvania. [Three 
cheers were here given for the speaker.] In conclusion, I give you as a 
sentiment : 

The health, long life, and prosperity of James Campbell, Postmaster General 
[Cheers.] 

Dr. A. W. Miller proposed — 

The Hon. J. C. Dobbin, Secretary of the Navy: LTis appointments in the District 
of Columbia are an earnest of his democracy. 

Mr. F. McNerhany having been loudly called for, briefly responded as 
follows : 

Mr. McN. said, that if he had consulted whatever vanity might be mixed 
up with the better feelings of his nature, he would, notwithstanding the 
flattering call which had been made upon him, have remained quietly in 
his seat ; for he was not prepared, even by momentary reflection, to give 
proper expression to the sentiments suggested to his mind by the glorious 
anniversary which they were commemorating. But the simple remembrance 
of the renowned old hero and statesman, Andrew Jackson, sent a thrill of 
patriotic pride through his heart, and impelled him, unprepared as he was, 
to respond to the wishes of the kind friends around him. He therefore did 
so with a cheerfulness — he wished he could say with an ability — commen- 
surate with the profound regard and veneration with which he cherished 
the glorious name and shining virtues of that distinguished man. The 
oTeat event in the brilliant career of General Jackson which they were now 
celebrating was enough to render immortal his name. But grand and sub- 
lime as was the victory at New Orleans — a victory achieved over a foreign 
foe by consummate strategy and lion-hearted courage — the series of his 
splendid triumphs, while in the executive chair, over the domestic enemies 
of the country, shed a halo of glory around his name, and stamped it in- 
delibly on the great heart of the nation. Jackson was dead, but his mighty 
spirit yet animates the great party of which he was one of the noblest 
champions. The Old Hickory of the Hermitage, which has so often braved 
successfully the storms that beat upon and around it, had faded, withered, 
and fallen to its mother earth ; but in its place had sprung up a Young 
Hickory of the Granite Hills, deeply rooted in the affections of the demo- 
cratic masses, and proudly towering above the warring elements that sur- 
rounded it. He (the speaker) belonged to no faction. He thought the 
Baltimore platform was broad enough and strong enough to uphold every 
true democrat in the land. The principles of the democratic party were 
traced out, as with a pencil of light, upon the great chart adopted by the 
convention of 1852. Upon those principles, and by that platform, he 
would stand, let vvho would desert them. He believed that this Adminiti- 



14 

txation had been so far, and would continue to be, guided by those princi- 
ples, and that its policy had been in accordance with them. He went for 
maintaining and preserving the union of the democratic party. On that 
union depended the union of the States, and the prosperity, the happiness, 
the glory of the country ; for, in a political point of view, all the blessings 
which we enjoy have been showered upon us under the auspices of the 
democratic party. He would bury all dissensions that night, if he could, 
in the grave of Andrew Jackson, and invoke his great spirit to unite in a 
perpetual bond of fellowship the true lovers of democratic principles. He 
had no fear that a few disorganizes would succeed in their unholy purpose 
of distracting, and weakening, and destroying the democratic party. The 
Administration could not be justly censured because every aspirant for 
office was not gratified in his wishes, especially when it was remembered 
that the applicants stood in proportion to the offices as fifty to one. But 
the masses of the democratic party are the farmers, the mechanics, and 
laborers of the land — the bone and sinew of the democracy — cared nothing 
for paltry offices. They fought for great principles. And when the next 
presidential battle was to be fought, the mighty legions of the democracy 
would be found again rallying around their glorious banners, emblazoned 
with their cherished and unchanging principles, and again bearing them 
proudly on to certain and triumphant victory. In accordance with the 
sentiments thus hurriedly expressed, he offered as a toast — 

The Administration of General Pierce : Sustained as it is by the true democratic 
sentiment of the country, it can proudly bid defiance to the "disorganizers who as- 
sailit. [Great applause.] 

Mr. Orr proposed — 

The health of D. Ratcliffe, Esq., who, in the face of personal disappointments, has 
not forgotten democratic principles: May his conduct commend itself to all true 
democrats. 

Mr. Ratcliffe returned thanks in a humorous speech, and concluded by 
offering the following sentiment : 

\ The Secretary of State: The gratitude of a generous people for past services will 
ever protect his rear, and may" the Lord have Marcy on an enemy who has th« 
hardihood to assail him in front 

Col. Berrett, in the absence of Mr. Marcy, responded to the sentiment ; 
and stated the Secretary of State was prevented, by unavoidable circum- 
stances, from being present. 

Numerous volunteer toasts were presented, tf which the following were 
preserved, viz : 

By S. A. Elliott : 

Perpetuity to the Liberty of Conscience, the Liberty of Speech, and the Liberty of 
the Press: All true men, Like Jackson, will ever vindicate God's three greatest gift* 
to man. 

By Lambert Tree, jr. : 

Hon. Stephen A. Douglas: An able statesman, a true patriot; may he long live to 
share in the councils and honors of the nation. 

By B. B. French : 

Our Country — the words of Washington, Jackson, and Pierce: May the virtue and 
happiness of the people be preserved, and the government which they have instituted 
be perpetual. 

The Federal Union: It must be preserved. "No North, no South, no East, no 
West, under the Constitution, but a sacred maintenance of tho common bond, and 
true devotion to the common brotherhood." 



15 

By- Gideon Pearce : 

The memory of the lamented Silas Wright: The American Cato, and the model 
statesman. 

By Frank Reilly : 

The Democratic Platform of 1852: We approved its adoption, we conquered under 
its banner, and we will struggle for its perpetuation. 

By Albert Greenleaf : 

The liberation of Koszta by Ingraham: A gallant act of official duty. Otherwise 
it is no theme for congressional praise. 

By Thomas Thornly : 

The Battle of Orleans then proved that the people were resolved to preserve the 
Union; the late presidential election proves their determination to adhere to it. 

By D. M. Comb : 

Woman : Without her the world would be a bear-garden, and man worse than 
"bruin." 

By Daniel Ratcliffe: 

Democracy and the Administration: The principles of the one are well illustrated 
by the practice of the other, and those who oppose the latter should be regarded as 
enemies of the former. May they be admonished by the fate of those who, in like 
manner, opposed the illustrious and lamented Jackson. 

By J. N. Barker : 

As one of the great family of nations, the United States may never forget, in view 
of their foreign relations, that our warmest sympathies naturally belong to those 
who are gallantly contending for their independence and liberties. 

By Jas. Maguire : 

Andrew Jackson: Celt versus Saxon. 

By D. M. Comb : 

The Scion of 1853, a chip of the Old Hickory block of 1815, permits not even a 
judge to mar the plan of his operations when the good of his country demands it ; 
and, like his great prototype, will be sustained by his country. 

By P. A. Byrne: 

Yorktown and New Orleans: The one the last glorious achievement in arms of 
flie Father of his Country which closed the revolution; the other, the crowning deed 
of the heroic Jackson which consummated the work of national independence. 

By J. B. Craig : 

Andrew Jackson ; The mechanic's friend. 

By Jas. Maguire : 

The Hero of New Orleans: Like his statue, unequalled and inimitable. 

The banquet, which was a most elegant affair, passed off with the utmost 
harmony. The company separated a little before 12 o'clock, after giving 
three hearty cheers for the perpetuation of democratic principles and the 
safety of the American Union, 






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